Iron electrodes for batteries are well known. McCormick, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,525,640, teaches double sintering of essentially pure, 3 to 5 micron diameter, iron particles, at 760.degree. C to 930.degree. C, in a hydrogen atmosphere, onto a nickel mesh support. This iron electrode, however, must then be electrochemically activated by cycling in a sulfur-containing alkaline solution.
Moulton, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,871,281, discloses activation of moist Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3, by spraying with FeSO.sub.4, (NH.sub.4).sub.2 SO.sub.4, Na.sub.2 SD.sub.4 or K.sub.2 SO.sub.4 solution. This composition is dried and then reduced in a hydrogen atmosphere, at 500.degree. C to 820.degree. C, to form an active battery material containing Fe and FeS, which can be loaded into a support, to provide an iron electrode. Winkler, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,066,178, teaches superactivation of an active iron battery material containing FeS by soaking with CuSO.sub.4 solution. This composition is then dried and loaded into a support to provide an iron electrode. All of these active materials must be pasted into a supporting plaque, which provides a thick, heavy electrode. Generally, these active materials must be charge-discharge cycled before they are useful.
What is needed is a low cost battery material, which in activation processing can be made into a thin, light weight, porous, structurally rigid electrode in a fully charged state, capable of immediate discharge without charge-discharge cycling.